Worlds Away
by dreams of infinities
Summary: "I can't deal with Asgard today." Alternate ending to S01 E13 T.R.A.C.K.S. What if the Cybertek grenade had opened a wormhole to Asgard? How will the team react when half of them end up in another world? And how far will Coulson go to get them back? SkyeWard, possible FitzSimmons.
1. Asgard and Fate

**So this is a little idea that just popped into my head when I was watching T.R.A.C.K.S. and Coulson said the fatal line, "I can't deal with Asgard today."**

** And then I got thinking, and I accidentally (because I am totally meant to be focusing on other stories) wrote this. Oops.**

** I'd love a review, or a follow, or a favourite. Please enjoy!**

"_Sometimes life has a cruel sense of humor, giving you the thing you always wanted at the worst time possible._"  
― Lisa Kleypas

Fate, Skye mused, was not nice. It simply happened, like it or not, and sometimes it happened in the blink of an eye - a car crash, love at first sight - and sometimes it happened over a long period of time, like...

Well, Skye couldn't be bothered to think of it right now. But if she could, she would think of love in the stories, and answers that she was finding, bit by bit, about her past.

Sometimes, she wondered if fate was written out before the dawn of time, just because whoever was up there, looking down on them, was bored. And if so, was there any way to avoid it?

Because avoiding it would have been very useful in her case, what with the hundred or so Italians locked with her and FitzSimmons in the Asgardian...what were they called here? Dungeons? Cells? Prison?

"Who knows?" she said aloud, and then, as an afterthought, "Who cares?"

Simmons was talking in broken Italian to a crying child who appeared to have been on the train without her parents and Fitz was arguing with Carlo Mancini, who, after a long discussion, had finally decided that it was in his own best interests that his three enemies here survived. They had gone around, checking that everyone was uninjured and (apart from those who were terrified and panicked out of their minds, who between them Skye and Simmons had calmed down), when they were done, they had made an announcement that they were looking into how they could get out of here.

Had the situation not been so dire, Skye was pretty sure that she would be bored. She was slumped against the wall, staring randomly into space and thinking about poetic things like fate.

But, she assumed, for quite a while that would be all she was able to do.

* * *

Ward was practically running up the walls. He wanted to _go up there,_ _save_ them, not just stand around doing nothing like they were. But it didn't help that they had lost two of the best scientists SHIELD had and anyway, there were dead ends everywhere.

Dead. Like they could all be. He knew it wasn't professional. But he missed her constant chatter beside him, her references to films that he had never even heard of, her bubbly, laid back attitude that irritated him as much as it satisfied her.

And, loathe though he was to admit it, he missed the scientists to. Their arguing, their knowledge of everything that Ward and the rest of the team could not even begin to process...

They could be dead now, slaughtered by Carlo Mancini. They had the night-night guns, but, if he faced the facts, they were the second half of the team, the half that had little if any idea of how to defend themselves.

It wasn't the fact that they could be in trouble, he told himself firmly, it was the _not knowing_.

Though of course none of that mattered now.

What mattered now was saving Skye.

(And FitzSimmons, obviously.)

**So...I'm not sure how that went. I know it was short, but to be honest it was slightly rushed. Review and who knows...maybe I'll continue!**


	2. Loki and Jane

**So, yes...I'm back! I was quite surprised about the response the fic got; I nearly screamed when I saw four reviews this morning! Thank you so much to all the reviewers/followers/favouriters so far!**

"_I believe that imagination is stronger than knowledge. That myth is more potent than history. That dreams are more powerful than facts. That hope always triumphs over experience. That laughter is the only cure for grief. And I believe that love is stronger than death_."

\- Robert Fulghum

"Which one of you is the leader?"

Skye looked up. The civilians had backed against the wall, leaving her, FitzSimmons, and Mancini, who was opening his mouth.

"I am," said Skye quickly. The two scientists turned round to stare at her.

"Skye..." Fitz murmured nervously.

The guards beckoned her over and, cautiously, she made her way towards them. They grabbed her roughly by the arms and pulled her away from the others. Mancini smirked, but Fitz and Simmons jumped up.

"Skye!"

"Hey!" she said indignantly. "Let me go!"

They pulled her away, and Skye stumbled, but they did not stop, instead simply dragging her along as if she was little more than a sack of potatoes. Which, she decided, she probably was to them - she'd read that Thor and the other Asgardians were gifted with "super strength".

"Ow! Get off me! I- I'm a friend of Coulson! You- you know, son of Coul, and- oh, my...God."

* * *

Ward was pacing up and down, chewing on his lip so hard that he could taste blood. They had got nowhere; they were nothing. Small, insignificant parts of the world that could not do anything to help save them. And HQ would not help. They said that the chances were that Skye and the others were dead already.

One man, they had sent. One. Apparently, he was one of their best scientists. Apparently, he was experienced and this was his area of expertise. Apparently, he was fascinated by this case and would do everything in his power to get Skye and the others back.

Ward had been expecting a small, twitchy man in his forties.

He was not expecting a glamorous-looking young woman with soft brown hair and a notebook in which she was scribbling furiously. A dark haired woman with glasses followed her, and, after that, there was a young man struggling with about six suitcases.

"Put them down there," Darcy said boredly.

"Hey there. I'm Jane Foster."

"Coulson?" Ward called. "I swear you said "he"."

* * *

Skye couldn't believe her eyes. In front of her was not Thor, or even Odin.

It was Loki.

"Can I...speak to...Thor?"

"Put her down," he ordered, turning to her. "Do you have a name?"

"What? Oh- yeah. My name's Skye."

"Sky. Why do Midgardians think of such strange names? A vast expanse of space. Nothing-"

"Skye," she interrupted, "Like, with an 'e' on the end. It's a name."

"Oh," he said, dangerously quietly, "Guards, leave us. She will not do me any harm."

"Oh, won't I? Because- hey. Where'd he go?" She whirled around, bewildered, and saw him standing behind her. "What the hell?"

"You foolish girl. Tell me how you came to Asgard."

"Tell me where Odin and Thor are."

"Do you not understand? You are in no position to bargain with me, child. Thor is on Midgard. Tell me how you got here."

"Thor's on Earth?"

"How did you get here?"

Skye rolled her eyes. "We travelled through a magic wormhole. That's all I know."

"Really." He raised an eyebrow.

"Yes! So if you can tell your crazy...soldier people to let us go, we'll find a way to get home and then-"

"I think not."

"Excuse me?"

"Have I any way to know that you tell the truth? For all I know, you could be serving as a distraction."

"For what? At least let the innocent people go!"

"I hardly see all those people as innocent."

"Please! There are _children_ here! Children without parents!"

"Oh, dear," he smirked.

"What?! Don't you have a _heart_?"

"Look at me," he said. "I survived."

"And so did I! And I still dream about my childhood that was torn apart, because I didn't grow up as a princess in a magical castle, did I? Do you seriously want to put someone through all that?"

He stared at her. "Guards," he said, and there was a slight tremor in his voice, "Put her back with the others."

** Phew! There we go!** **I think that for this fic I'll do very short chapters ****because that is just the easiest way to continue this fic and still have time for other things.**

** Reviews!**

**HydraAlumini- Well, here's me, continuing! I'm glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for reviewing!**

**babycraycray- Oh, thank you! I'm glad you like this idea; I've had it in my head for a while but didn't know how to do it. Thanks for reviewing!**

** Pink Crane- Ok, then, I will! :P Hope you liked it! Thanks for reviewing!**

**EmmaJMcGhee- I'm really glad you liked it! I can't tell you how excited I get when I see reviews, thank you for making my day! And for reviewing!**

** Please do leave a review! If you do, you can have virtual cookies!**


	3. Hunger and Anger

**New chapter! Read, enjoy, review!**

"_Discussion is an exchange of knowledge; an argument an exchange of ignorance_."

-Robert Quillen

"Well, you're the one who _got _us here, we were kind of expecting you to know how!" Fitz yelled. The others were sat around the edges, looking miserable. They were running out of food. One bright spark had brought with them most of the food that was on sale, and with the packed lunches that a lot of people had brought, they had been doing ok. But now everyone was hungry, and it was making Fitz angry.

"Yes!" Simmons agreed. "Seeing as you were the inventor of this technology, one would assume that you would know how to get us back! The lives of all these people rest in your hands. Do you not want to go home?"

Mancini stood up and backhanded her, hard, on the cheek. She gasped and stumbled back, tripping over her own feet and landing on her back.

"Jemma!" Fitz cried, kneeling down beside her.

"I'm fine," she said quickly, picking herself up and gently touching her cheekbone where a bruise was beginning to form.

"Don't hit women," Skye said angrily as she took a look. It was beginning to swell. Mancini looked sheepish. He did not regret his actions, but he wanted to get out of here and those two were his best chance of doing that. And they weren't getting along.

"Skye?" The six year old, Laura, had attached herself firmly to Skye's side and looked up to her as some sort of mother. She didn't speak English, but she had learned her name fairly quickly.

"Shh," Skye comforted her, gathering her in her arms and hugging her close. "It's alright."

Laura didn't understand, but the words were soothing, so she hugged this nice woman back. "_Ho fame_," she mumbled, rubbing her stomach to show what she meant.

"Me too, sweetie, me too."

Skye rubbed her back reassuringly and sat her down next to a kindly-looking gentleman and his wife. She told them to look after her and though they only vaguely understood her words, the message was clear. They nodded.

Then she walked over to Mancini. "You harm anyone in here, ever again, and I swear that I will kill you as soon as we make it out of this."

He nodded, scowling.

"Great. Emergency meeting."

* * *

Jane Foster stared at him.

"Agent Coulson was killed before New York," she said finally. "And I'm not a _man_. Why would I be a man?"

Darcy laughed. "He totally thought you were going to be a man!"

"Yes, thank you, I think we gathered that," she snapped.

"Ward? What's wron- Dr. Foster?"

"Oh, my God!" Jane said.

Darcy swore, the whistled. "Small world, huh? You a secret twin or something?"

"No. I'm Phil Coulson."

"He has a first name?" Darcy whispered to the man who Ward later discovered to be named Ian. "Whoa."

"If you'll follow me," Coulson said, leading them into the lab.

"Can I ask-"

"No," May said harshly. "We need to find our team."

Jane seemed to accept this and put down her notebook on one of the surfaces. Coulson showed her the grenade that had been used to open the wormhole and the holotable.

Upon seeing this, she shook her head. "I'm not sure I even _want_ to know how to use that."

Coulson shrugged. "Do you think you can help them?"

"Well, from what I've heard, two pretty good scientists are up there, so I'm willing to bet that they're searching too. But..." she trailed off.

"What?"

"I've been to Asgard. There was the...what was it? Bifrost. This dude sent us there and back really quickly. So, we have three main options. One: the Bifrost is broken, or closed, or whatever; two: they're imprisoned; three..."

She didn't finish, but Ward knew what she meant.

That they could be dead.

* * *

"Ok," Fitz said. "Our problems."

"We're trapped in a different world, in a prison, with no scientific resources, no friends, and no knowledge of how to get home?" Skye suggested unhelpfully.

"Uh, ok...any solutions to that one?"

"Well, we have each other, so we have friends. We know that they aren't completely ignoring us, because they talked to Skye," Simmons said optimistically, and they all groaned.

"Right. Next problem."

"People. They're beginning to doubt us and you can see that they're all losing hope. We need them to stay strong. How?"

"Solution?" Skye asked hopefully.

There was silence.

"Ok. Next?"

"Odin and Thor aren't here, and they were our only hope of forming an alliance. We don't know where they are, and Loki knows we're allied with them."

"We'll come back to that one," Fitz said hastily. "But right now, most importantly, is-"

"No food or water," Mancini finished for him, in thickly accented English though, in his defence, his Italian accent was beginning to fade.

"We need to ask them for some," Simmons said finally, looking miserable.

Their gazes shifted to Skye. "I can't," she saaid flatly. "I don't think he likes me very much."

"But he knows who you are. Just...be nice. Talk him into it. You're quite good at talking, Skye."

"I'm not-" she said, but then her stomach growled loudly, and she looked at the tired, pale faces around her and she realised that, like it or not, the decision was already made.

**Whee! Reviews! I get so excited when I see one! [The other day I was looking at someone's profile and there was this thing that said, "_Copy and paste this onto your profile if you get excited when you see just two reviews._" And I thought that that was normal. Is it not?]**

** Reviews!**

**cmjfire14- Hmm, maybe... :P If you like, Inhuman Skye can make an appearance, but I won't say any more... *chuckles mysteriously* Thanks for reviewing!**

**agent. music. art. - I can definitely put more scenes between the two of them, if you want me to! Thanks for reviewing!**

** EmmaJMcGhee- Haha, thanks! I'm glad you liked it! Thanks for reviewing!**

** the-black-feathers- Ooh, really? You just made my day! I'll definitely continue with this story. Thanks for reviewing!**

** HydraAlumni- Yes, I agree. I don't mind stories like that, they're normally very good, but I like to read new things every once in a while so I don't know what will happen. I'm glad you find it intriguing! Thanks for reviewing!**

** CallToMuster- Right. Request one: most definitely! That will be fun to write about! Request two: I will definitely give it my best shot, but I think it's just easier to update more quickly with short chapters. I'll try, though! Thanks for reviewing!**

** babycraycray- Yup! I'm glad you liked it! Thank you so much for reviewing!**

** Pink Crane- Yes, he is probably my favourite villain too (aside from Voldemort - he'll always be awesome). I still can't work out whether he really is evil or just seriously misunderstood... I'll try to put lots more of him in! Thanks for reviewing!**

** EIGHT REVIEWS! EIGHT! My gosh, you guys just made my day! Thank you so much, that's the biggest amount of reviews I've ever received for one chapter! A big shout-out to all the followers and favouriters, you guys are amazing as well!**

** Thanks!**


	4. Questions and Fear

**New chapter! Read, enjoy, review!**

"_Why should things be easy to understand_?"

― Thomas Pynchon

"Question after question, Midgardian, ask after ask. Why should we grant you your wishes when you do not grant ours?"

"What-?! You haven't asked us anything!"

"I asked you how you got here. I asked you to go home."

"Well, you could send us home! Easily! But we don't have any resources, any food, any-"

"Yes," Loki snapped. "Because you are mortals, and what do mortals like to do? Complain. About everything."

Skye's mouth opened slightly as she stared at Loki. "We don't live for thousands of years! We will, in time, starve, and then you'll have a ton of dead bodies on your hands that you don't want and-" Loki disappeared, and Skye paused for a second, before continuing angrily, "Then you won't find anything."

A hand clamped down on her shoulder, and Skye felt an electric jolt run though her entire body. She nearly collapsed but managed to regain her balance at the last moment. Loki, however, leaped back with a shout and two guards came forwards.

"I am fine," he muttered, and they retreated. "How did you do that?"

"Do what?"

He gave her a long, piercing stare, but she didn't understand. In the end, he beckoned the guards and told them to put her in a room on the other side of the castle.

"Wait!" Skye shouted, trying to struggle free, "Stop, let me go!"

Loki turned away and busied himself with whatever kingly tasks he had to do.

* * *

"Where's Skye?"

"What?" Fitz said distractedly.

"Skye. She hasn't come back."

"Oh- oh. How long's she been gone?"

Simmons checked her watch. "Two hours."

"_What_? Why didn't you say anything?"

"The same reason you didn't."

"Well, what do we do?"

"What can we do?"

"Erm...we could tell the guards. Maybe they're still loyal to Thor or something."

She laughed drily. "And if they're not? They might execute us. We know _nothing_ about Asgard, Fitz, nothing about their laws or religions or-"

"Do Asgardians have a religion?"

"Exactly! Or beliefs, whatever, you get my point. And Skye may have violated one of their laws, or broken a rule, so..."

"We don't know anything and there's no way of knowing until she gets back."

"_If_ she comes back," Simmons corrected him sadly.

"But...she will."

"Of _course_ she will," Simmons said, trying her very best to sound bright and optimistic. "She has to."

They looked up as one of Asgard's gold-clad guards came in in and placed a tray of bread rolls on the floor.

They continued to look up, but Skye did not follow.

* * *

Jane had made herself quite at home in the lab, familiarising herself with the equipment and storage units until she felt able to start work.

Darcy had decided to explore the entire plane and was currently trying to persuade her "intern" to do...well, Jane didn't really know what Darcy was trying to persuade him to do. She wasn't even particularly sure she wanted to.

Ward came down.

"Any progress?" he asked hopefully.

"Same as it was the last seven times you asked, I'm afraid," she said with a weak smile.

"Well...Thor's up there, right? He'll look after them."

Jane stared at him as though he had just discovered an entire goldmine.

"What?"

"Thor!"

"Excuse me?"

"DARCY!"

"I don't-"

"GET DOWN HERE RIGHT NOW!"

"Dr. Foster, I-"

"You," she said, "Are a genius."

* * *

"Are you serious? Would it not have been easier to have _told_ me that Thor was on Earth?! Or perhaps, I don't know, _anyone_? Because Skye, FitzSimmons, and the others would be back here right now, and Ward wouldn't be having mental breakdowns every five minutes-"

Darcy looked fascinated. "He doesn't look like the type to have mental breakdowns."

"He's good at hiding emotions," Coulson said, exasperated.

In truth, Ward was struggling.

He didn't like this.

He wanted to be able to _do_ something, to be able to help.

But this was...this was different. This was science and technology and some sort of magic or whatever all mixed into one and there was nothing he could do.

Ward was useless.

Worthless.

It was at times like this that he thought of his past.

It was at times like this that he needed Skye.

But Skye wasn't here.

And that, he thought, was why he felt like this.

He felt stupid.

He had just wasted ten minutes of his life - of _Skye's_ life - thinking about that, which had gotten him nowhere.

**Sorry that was so short, everyone! I don't have very much time right now! I'm also sorry that I haven't updated in a few days, people who have read my other fanfics probably know that I tend to get the first few chapters published quite quickly and then slow down a bit later on.**

** Anyway, reviews!**

** EmmaJMcGhee- Yes! Darcy is probably one of my all-time top five Marvel characters; I just couldn't resist putting her in this story. As for Mancini, I know he might be a little bit OOC but I thought it would be interesting to put a character like him in there. Thanks for reviewing!**

** agent. music. art.- OK then, I will include lots of that in this. Not romantically, obviously, because this is a SkyeWard fic and I think that that pairing would just be...odd. Who are her parents? Hmm. Thanks for reviewing!**

** the-black-feathers- Ooh, I'm glad you like it! Thanks for reviewing!**

** That's all for now, please leave a review with a though, question, suggestion, whatever, and I will be eternally grateful!**


	5. Sif and Plans

**New chapter! Read, enjoy, review!**

_"Some infinities are bigger than other infinities."_  
_― John Green (_The Fault in Our Stars_)_

"Where are the prisoners from Midgard?" she demanded, authority clear in her tone as she faced the guards.

They gestured through the doors and she thanked them as is only polite, before stepping through to find them. They were not difficult to spot; dressed in their outrageous clothing Sif felt that she would recognise them from a mile away.

"Which one of you is the leader?" she inquired.

Heads turned in her direction, and then towards three of them sat in the middle of the cell. She tapped her foot impatiently and, if only slightly shakily, they nodded and stood up.

"Three of you?" She raised an eyebrow but beckoned them over and though at first the boy with curls refused they made their way towards her. "I am the Lady Sif. If you would follow me."

* * *

"Jane! You called for me?"

A deep, booming voice carried its way through the plane to Ward, who was being pestered by Darcy for a "selfie for Facebook".

"No, I will not take a 'selfie' with you!" he yelled for the seventh time, pushing her roughly aside.

"Ooh," she squealed, "Thor's here! Love that guy...he's _so_ hot."

"Shut up!" he hissed angrily.

"Hey, are you jealous?"

"No!"

"Darcy, stop harassing Agent Ward," Jane said, passing them.

He turned scarlet. She snickered, and hurried after Jane.

Ward sighed. He was going to have to talk to Coulson.

* * *

"You are friends of Thor?"

Simmons nodded doubtfully, and Mancini looked very confused.

"Who?"

"He's with us," Fitz explained, "But he's not a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent."

"Oh," she said, confused. "How many times have you met Thor?"

"None," Simmons admitted, "But we friends of Coulson- um, Son of Coul?"

"Thor told me he was dead," she murmured, frowning at them.

"It's a long story," Fitz said quickly. "Can you help us?"

"I will help friends of my friend. You wish to return to Midgard, yes?"

"Er...we all do."

Sif looked shocked. "Such acts are treason. I could perhaps take three of you but if I helped you all then Loki would discover me for sure!"

Mancini seemed a little irritated that they had turned the offer down. He did not understand all of Sif's speech, but what he did he had not liked.

"Send me home," he said suddenly.

They all turned to stare at him. "What?"

"I'll help from Earth."

"Oh, of course you will," Fitz said angrily. "Instead of running off to Cybertek and leaving us here to rot!"

"He has a point," Sif muttered. "I could send you back with him to make sure he doesn't escape. From what I have heard he knows how you got here. You could work from Midgard to bring your people home.

Fitz and Simmons looked at each other. "Skye."

"Is there a problem with the sky?"

"Oh- no. Our friend, we think...we think Loki has her. She went to ask him for food."

Sif though about this information. "Was she brave, your friend?"

"Ye-"

"Why?"

"Because there is every chance that Loki bargained with her: food for your people if she gave herself."

They swallowed. They didn't want to admit it, but that was exactly the sort of thing Skye would do.

"I will try and find her," Sif promised. "In the meantime, I suggest that you think of a way to let this man back to Midgard without betraying you."

Mancini looked very offended and sniffed indignantly.

Of course he had had every intention of betraying them, but what did that matter?

* * *

Skye, to say the least, was bored.

And _terrified_ out of her mind, of course. She had no idea what Loki was going to do to her. What was going on?

And she was hungry.

Hungry like she'd never experienced before. She lay on the bed - whatever this room was, it was far more comfortable than where she was before - curled up and entirely miserable.

Skye was unsure where the others were. She thought of little Laura, with wide eyes and small hands, clutching at her top.

There was a knock at the door, but she didn't have the energy to stand up.

_Loki_, she thought.

The door opened.

"I am the Lady Sif," someone said. "I need you to come with me."

** So, here's Sif! Will she rescue them all? You'll have to wait and see! (But probably not, seeing as I'm not ready for this fic to be over yet ;P)**

** I would really, really like some ideas to help me along with this fic, so please let me know if you have any!**

** Reviews!**

** EmmaJMcGhee- Yes, well done Ward! Of COURSE he needs Skye! :) Thanks for reviewing!**

** the-black-feathers- I'm sorry it took so long for me to update. I'm glad you're enjoying this fic! Thanks for reviewing!**

** NN010- Thank you! I'm glad you liked this! As for the Asgardians, only Loki knows now, but that could change...:P Thanks for reviewing!**

** Pink Crane- Yes, poor Grant! Poor Skye! I'm sorry I didn't put in more about Loki, I think a lot of people wanted to see him... He will make an appearance in the next chapter! Thanks for reviewing!**

** VivaGrazia- Ohhh, thank you... I'm so glad you're enjoying it. Thanks for reviewing!**

** That was all the reviews!**

** I'd like to point out that I am British, so haven't watched the more recent episodes (the latest one was ep. 10; it's starting again on Friday). Please don't put any spoilers in reviews!**

** Thanks!**


	6. Bedrooms and Solutions

**I'm so sorry it's been so long, guys. I'm going away for the week in a couple of days, so I'm trying to write as much as I can. Please, please, please leave a review!**

"_All knowledge hurts._"

\- Cassandra Clare, _City of Bones_

Skye, bewildered, let Sif grab her by the wrist and pull her from the room. "I don't understand," she found herself murmuring, and was somewhat glad to discover that Sif had not heard anything. She didn't want to appear ignorant. She stumbled slightly as they took a sharp left, then a slight right, and then she was being tigged into a small bedchamber.

"A spare chamber," Sif said, as though it was perfectly normal to have forgotten bedrooms dotted all over the house - which, Skye guessed, in Asgard it probably was - and shut the door behind them. She gestured to the large bed. "Sit down. I am afraid it is a little small, but it will do for now."

_Small? _Having spent several years living in a van (and this room was several times the size of that), it seemed anything but. Skye sat down on the bed weakly, too exhausted to bother herself with anything else. She felt as though she should remove her shoes. The strange warrior-woman told her to wait for a minute or so, which she did, and when she returned she was carrying a steaming bowl of water and a bundle of some description.

"I am sorry. It would hardly do to ask the servants to draw up a bath. It would look very suspicious." She put the bundle down on the bed. "You are hungry, yes? I will bring food in ten minutes."

Skye nodded and thanked her. As soon as the door closed, with all the energy she could muster she opened the bundle and found a hairbrush, a dress that she could not imagine wearing, a small knife and sheath, a bar of soap and some sort of thick, soft rag that Skye presumed was meant to act as a flannel. Slightly more eagerly, she pulled off her grubby clothes and began to wash in the warm, fragrant water.

* * *

"Fitz, there is a way."

"A way- what?"

"A way to get Mancini back to Earth."

"Jemma, am I going to like this?"

She ignored him completely. "One of us could go. The other could stay."

He looked up tiredly. The guards had just brought them another tray of food and he had had to share it out to everyone. "Is that what you want?" he asked, more than a little injured that this was the only solution she could think of.

"I- _no_, Fitz, no, of course not. But...it would _work_. We could contact Coulson and a get Mancini to a S.H.I.E.L.D. base, where he'll have all the labs and everything to-"

"I get it. But there's got to be another solution. I mean..."

She looked up at him - very slightly; he was not much taller than her at all. "But it's the simplest. Ockham's Razor, remember?"

His expression softened. "Second semester at the Academy? Professor Vaughn's class?"

"We were so bored," she said, smiling slightly, "That we had a war of quotes and theories."

"And we _hated_ each other."

"So," she said quietly, starting to laugh a little because they had gone over the story many times, "It became a battle of wit." They both smiled at the reference. "And we ended up using our mobile phones to search famous philosophers."

"You know, I think we learned more from that than anything Professor Vaughn ever taught us. But Ockham's, or Occam's, Razor was..."

"The simplest explanation is probably the most likely to be true," they said together.

"Which means," she clarified hesitantly, "That it would be easier to-"

"Send one of us down with him," he finished for her, "You're right."

"And now you've finished that long debate which got you nowhere, would you like to acknowledge my existence and remember that the person you're talking about is standing behind you?"

They both started guiltily and turned round. Simmons' face blushed a delicate shade of pink and Fitz looked irritated, but he could only really focus on one thing.

_His English really_ had _improved_.

Which was more than slightly random, but, he reasoned, very true. So true, in fact, that you could hardly tell he was Italian at all. Fitz stared at him.

"What are you hiding?"

* * *

"All of them, in Asgard?" Thor boomed. "Impossible. I have seen Midgardian technology: though much of it is impressive, you - with your short lives, and no offence is intended to you-"

"None taken," May said curtly.

"With lives short such as yours, I hardly see how your minds and souls can become wise enough to create a second Bifrost."

"But it is possible." It was not so much a question as a statement.

"Evidently," Jane said.

"Why can't Thor just go up there and sort it all out? I mean, it's probably just a massive misunderstanding, right?"

"It isn't that simple," Coulson said calmly, striding into the lab and completely forgetting who was in there.

"SON OF COUL?!" Thor bellowed. "WHAT KIND OF TRICKERY IS THIS?!"

* * *

Loki knocked on the door, smirking slightly. "Open up, little Midgardian..."

There was silence. No reply. Nothing.

He laughed quietly. "You cannot hide, you know."

Still nothing.

"Well, I hope for your sake you are fully clothed, or this should be very embarrassing for both of us."

He opened the door.

She was not there.

"Sif," he snarled.

**Right, I'm going to rush through this. Right now I'm watching Iron Man 3 and I want to watch the ending. **

**Reviews!**

** VivaGrazia- Totally yay for Sif! She's awesome! Hmm, I would put that in except I don't want to make it that easy, because I'm evil! And yes, I love putting Ward and Darcy together, because I really think they'do clash terribly :). Thanks for reviewing!**

** EmmaJMcGhee- Yes, let's hope so! I'll probably send him back in a few chapters' time, so enjoy the arguments while you can! Thanks for reviewing!**

** I'm sorry if I annoyed you guys with the ending to this chapter... :P**

** Please leave a review, you can have virtual cake or cookies or chocolate or something! **


	7. Bad and Worse

**Yay! I'm back!** **I'd just like to say a big thank you to everyone who was reviewed, followed and favourited this fic so far!**

"_The liar's punishment is, not in the least that he is not believed, but that he cannot believe anyone else._"  
― George Bernard Shaw, _The Quintessence of Ibsenism_

In the end, Sif had to force her into the dress. Admittedly, Skye was not feeling her best, but that did not stop her from being fairly certain that she did not want to walk around in something like that. However, as soon as she put it on Skye felt better: more powerful, more...well, Asgardian. The dress was of some sort of flowing sky blue silk (for your name is Sky, Sif had said, despite her protestations about being _Skye_), and it floated from the slim waistband down to the floor. There was a lacy corset, to which Skye was unfamiliar and did not like, and a dark ribbon around the waist. When she had struggled into it, Sif sat her down and brushed her hair until it positively _shone_, before sweeping her hair up in a typical ladylike fashion.

After this, Sif handed Skye a silver plate. On it were two bread rolls, one of which she wolfed down hungrily. "Slow down," Sif warned her, "you will make yourself unwell." She ate the second at a more dignified pace, enjoying the rich, salty flavour of it.

"Wow," Skye said. "Asgardian food is _nice_."

Sif smiled. "Our cooks have thousands of years to prepare the recipes."

Skye nodded solemnly, as if she had a clue what she was talking about. The other woman then proceeded to apply something to her face, which was uncomfortable, to say the least. She glanced in the mirror, and her jaw dropped open. Skye was transformed.

* * *

"So, when Sif comes back, we'll tell her. Are you sure you're ok with this, Fitz?"

Fitz nodded slowly. To be honest, he was not at all "ok with this". He didn't feel comfortable just leaving Jemma and Skye like this, with no idea how they were or what they were doing...little Laura came and sat on Jemma's lap.

"_Jemma_?" she asked. "_Dov'è Skye_?" She had, Fitz noted, taken quite a shine to the young woman.

Simmons shook her head sadly. "She's gone away for a while, sweetie."

Laura shook her head, not understanding. "Skye. W-where Skye?"

In fact, Fitz mused, she almost seemed to see Skye as a sort of mother figure.

He shook his head. "Gone." He gestured to the door.

Laura looked upset. "_Quando essa sarà di nuovo?"_

He looked over at Jemma for help. "Um," she said tentatively, "_a lungo_?"

She seemed to accept this and settled down with her head resting on Simmons' shoulder. _What did she say? _Fitz mouthed.

_She wanted to know when Skye would be back_, she replied. _I told her a long time._

He nodded. This was probably for the best. She was stroking Laura's soft, dark blonde hair gently. If only he could be good with children, Fitz thought wistfully. Life would be easier.

A strange, beautiful woman walked in. Fitz did not recognise her. He wondered if she knew the man they had brought in earlier; his wife perhaps? They both looked to be of noble blood. She seemed to be walking towards them... Fitz didn't think the man had been in the cell next to theirs.

"Oh, my goodness," Jemma breathed from beside him.

"What?" he asked distractedly.

"_Skye_!" she said. "Look."

Fitz snapped out of his trance. "What? Where?"

"There, Fitz!" She sounded exasperated. "Coming towards us."

_Surely not..._

He looked again. Yes. It was Skye. How could she be so...so transformed? She came over to the transparent...wall thing...and looked through at them.

"Hey," she said quietly.

"Skye? Oh my-" Fitz stumbled over his words, before giving up completely and opting for a simpler speech. "Where the _hell_ did you go?"

"Loki," she said simply. "I don't know why, or how, but I think I- I did something to him. And then he locked me up, but Sif got me out. She made me wear _this_, though." She grimaced.

"I'm not surprised!" Simmons exclaimed. "You certainly look the part now."

Fitz pointed at Laura. "What are you doing here?" he asked more quietly.

Skye looked hurt. "I came to see if you were ok."

"No, I mean why would you put yourself in danger like that? Why would you-"

"Oh, come on, Fitz," Simmons said.

"Ok, listen. I'm going to get you out. Have you figured out a plan? Are you taking Mancini?"

"Fitz is- Fitz is taking him back. Explaining to Coulson and the others what's going on. They'll start working on the Bifrost from Earth. I'm staying here to make sure that everyone's ok."

Most of the civilians were sleeping, Fitz noted. This was good. They wouldn't ask too many questions.

"Are you sure?" Skye looked concerned. "You don't want to-"

"I'm sure," she said firmly. "Someone has to look after these people; I don't think they can survive on their own. Just do me a favour, and find us some more food? We are getting some, but it isn't..._enough_." She gave a weak attempt at a smile, but to Fitz it looked more like she was trying not to cry.

"Ok. I'm...going to have to take the other two now."

She called the guards over and they produced fine, silver chains. Fitz stood up and Mancini, having just awoken, looked up sleepily. He beckoned him over.

The guards entered the cell and pulled the two towards them. They looped the silver chains around their wrists. Fitz felt them snake around his arms and pull tight. The guards bowed to Skye, and handed her the chains. She eyed them with "disdain", and led the two away.

* * *

Loki was _not_ having a good day. His lips had almost permanently been drawn back in a snarl and the girl of the Sky was nowhere to be found. He was going to the dungeons. Her _friends_ would tell him, and if they didn't, well...he would send her a message. They were insignificant, mortals. They could easily be hurt - and killed - at no cost to him.

He swept past a beautiful noblewoman leading two men on chains. She lowered her gaze, as was correct and proper, but the other two stared at him outright. He glared daggers at both of them, and eventually they looked down as well. Good. They should be respectful of him. He was their _king_, for the love of Odin!

He stalked into the prison, making his way towards the cell that held the Midgardians. They were easy enough to spot, in their crude, poorly made clothing.

The wall was transparent; he could see the gold markings just barely. One young woman - barely a woman, really, she was just a girl - with a small child in her lap looked up as he came closer. Her eyes widened in fear.

"Where is the lady of the Sky?" he hissed.

She woke the child and moved her to an older couple, instructing them to look after her. Then she moved back towards him.

"Who- who?"

"I am the god of lies, foolish girl, do not think you can deceive me. Where is she?"

She shrank away, trembling. "I don't know."

He opened the door, walked in, and grabbed her by her collar. "Tell me."

She didn't seem to be able to breathe. He had forgotten how weak mortals were.

Wrapping an arm around her throat, he pulled her from the cell. "Please," she gasped out, "there are people who need me."

He slammed the door shut.

* * *

"Are you sure you're fine to stay?" Fitz asked. "It would be safer on Earth."

Sif shook her head. "Loki knows magic. He would find you."

Skye nodded slowly.

"Mancini? Are you ready?"

He too nodded.

"Time to go, then."

* * *

"Thor, I'm not-"

"Coulson, we're detecting strange energy readings. It looks like some sort of-"

"Portal," Coulson said breathlessly. "They're coming back."

* * *

Riding the Bifrost was like being squeezed in a hundred directions at once, though not necessarily unpleasant. With it came a strange sense of euphoria, and Fitz found himself enjoying the ride.

He fell straight onto his knees when they hit the ground, his legs having buckled under the impact. A glance at Mancini told him that the same had happened to his companion.

"Right. We need to contact-"

A fist swung at his face, and Fitz didn't have time to duck. It hit again, and he fell backwards.

"What the he-"

Another one.

"What are you doing?" He felt himself slump to the ground.

"I'm sorry," Mancini said, his accent almost gone. He didn't sound very sorry.

Fitz's vision was swimming. "No," he started. "No."

_No. Nonononono. Please, no._

Please.

No.

Jemma-

Fitz's eyes closed.

**AHAHAHAHA I'M SUCH A TROLL.**

** Did you all enjoy that? I hope so! I wasn't going to put all that in, but I thought it was time for some spontaneous trollity (yes, it's a word - but don't look it up because not many people know it exists :P) and ended it like that instead.**

** Reviews!**

** EmmaJMcGhee- Yes, maybe not so good for them, but good for me! I think in the next chapter I will put in a bit about how he knew and possibly where Odin has been the WHOLE ENTIRE TIME, because there are quite a lot of questions that need answering. And I love Thor when he's confused! Thanks for reviewing!**

** Maddison1803- Yeah, I like it when people mix them together, and I thought I'd give it a try myself. I'm so glad that you enjoyed it, it means a lot to me. Thanks for reviewing!**

** VivaGrazia- Hooray for trolliness (ooh, there's a new one again)! Why save them when it's so much fun to put their lives in mortal danger? I'm glad that someone finally agrees with me. It's so much fun being an author... Thanks for reviewing!**

** That's all for now, folks, but please, please leave me a review as they are probably the only thing that actually keep me writing! Thank you for your support!**


	8. Confusions and Illusions

**Uh... Hi there. Do you remember me? I'm the one who wrote that fanfiction ages ago about Asgard. I'm sorry it took me so long to update. WARNING: SPOILERS FOR THOR: THE DARK WORLD.**

"_Courage is not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it._"

\- Nelson Mandela

She was in a crumpled heap on the floor. _Pathetic mortal, _Loki thought. He had barely held onto her at all but by the time they had reached his chambers she was already unconscious. Still, she would do as insurance to make the Lady of the Sky come out from her hiding place and, having no significant value, he could hurt her if need be to force the infuriating Midgardian admit that it was Sif who had taken her in.

She stirred slightly, so he nudged her with his foot and she flinched awake, gasping. A hand flew to her neck, and he saw a neat line of bruises where he had held her. "What do you want?" she whispered, her voice still hoarse. How weak was she?

"That is no concern of yours," he said harshly, dragging her to her feet and producing the same fine silver chain that was used on all their prisoners. He fitted it around her wrist and attached it to his bedpost. "Make yourself quite comfortable," he smiled - though it was not a friendly smile - and stepped outside. There were guards posted outside his door.

"Are we to let anyone in, my Lord?" one asked, bowing low.

"No," he snapped. "And order a meeting of the court."

* * *

May already had the 'bus in the air. Thor was trying to work out what Loki had done to make an illusion of Coulson's life form from Asgard, and was persistently slapping, pinching and asking him personal questions that Loki did not know the answer to.

Ward, yet again, found himself alone with Darcy (Jane had disappeared somewhere. He vaguely wondered if she was trying to set them up). "Sooo," she was saying, "what's the deal with that Skye person who's in Asgard? You guys are totally, like," - she coughed pointedly - "right? I mean, when you do talk, her name's in practically every sentence. Are you looking forward to seeing her again? If you like, I can set you up on a-"

He left, figuring that it was probably better to be rude than to start beating her to a bloody pulp. Something started beeping - the cargo door was being opened.

"Sir?" he asked, heading down to the lab. "What's going on?"

"There may be Asgardians," Coulson explained. "Thor's gone to check if they're friendlies."

They waited in awkward silence for a minute, before something - someone - blurred back in front of the doors.

It was Thor, and there was a body in his arms.

* * *

Skye was very lost. Despite Sif's clear instructions on where to go to "relieve herself", she must have taken a wrong turning at some point because she didn't recognise anything.

A gong sounded, and all the nobles turned and started walking elsewhere. She didn't particularly want to talk to anyone; it would only seem suspicious to be living in the citadel and not have a clue where to go. She wondered if Sif was looking for her. Would she find her before Loki did? This was Skye's main fear - Loki.

"Forgive me, my Lady," came a voice from behind her. Skye jumped. "You look slightly lost."

"I'm new here," she amended.

"Well." He offered her his arm, which she took. What other choice did she have? "I shall take you to the courtroom anyways."

"The courtroom?"

He seemed surprised. "Loki has called for a gathering of all the noblemen and women. Are you...?"

"Oh," she replied hastily, "of course."

"My name is Fandral."

"I'm..." She didn't want to give him her real name. "May."

"Well, Lady of May." She groaned inwardly. Not again. "When did you arrive?"

_Help me,_ she thought desperately. "A few days ago. My mother has kept me tucked away."

This seemed to be the right thing to say, because he laughed. "And you left because you needed some air. Does she know?"

She forced out a giggle. It sounded high pitched and slightly strangled, not that Fandral noticed. "No."

"I say, why don't I show you around after the court? It is unwise for a beautiful Lady such as yourself to be wandering the castle alone. Loki is on the warpath."

"Why? I mean, I thought Odin was King..." This was, apparently, the wrong thing to say, because he stopped and looked at her strangely. "Nobody tells me anything," she said quickly.

"After the battle with the Dark Elves - I presume you know about that? - Odin fell into Odinsleep. With Thor in Midgard and Frigga passed, we were without a ruler. But then Loki, who we were sure was dead, appeared. He said the body we found was an illusion created by Malekith, and that he had been in hiding. He took over as king."

Skye stared at him. "But you don't believe that, do you?"

Fandral grabbed her wrist and pulled her onwards past a group of old men in red robes. She ducked her head, letting her hair fall and cover her face, ad Sif had told her. "Do you?" he muttered.

"No." It was a risk, and a big one, but she took it. "I don't."

* * *

"Fitz?"

"Fitz, can you hear me?"

"Listen, sir, I need you to squeeze my hand if you can understand me."

This time it was a woman's voice, one that he didn't recognise. There was a cool hand in his, so he squeezed it.

"That's good. Now, can you open your eyes?"

Slowly, he blinked them open. "Ow!"

"May, dim the lights." That was Coulson. When the incessant burning stopped, he opened them again.

"My head..."

"Hey, he's Scottish!"

"Darcy, shut up." That woman again. Her voice was calm and gentle.

"Where'd you learn first aid anyway, Jane? You're an astrophysicist."

"I took a course. It's useful."

Fitz swore suddenly, as the room stopped spinning slightly. "Mancini!"

"Fitz, what happened? Where's Skye?" Ward asked.

"Sent- me and Mancini...down to Earth- to work on- getting them back. Mancini..." A wave of nausea swept over him and he lay back down, his head ringing.

"He's got a concussion," said Jane. "A bad one."

"Thor, can you find Mancini?" Coulson pulled up and image of his face on the screen. "He shouldn't be too far from the portal."

Thor nodded. "It should not be difficult. Which direction did he go in?"

"Fitz?"

He shook his head. "I was dizzy-"

"It's fine. Just scout around, OK?"

* * *

Laura didn't like it here.

It was cold and she was always hungry but never got enough to eat and the old couple Jemma had put her with smelt funny and didn't speak fluent Italian. Skye had disappeared and she had seen a bad man drag Jemma away. She was scared that the bad man would take her away too.

The conductor came up. "_Laura, si?_"

"_Si,_" she replied quietly.

He picked her up and carried her over to a younger couple with a baby. "_Ecco qui. Queste persone si prenderanno cura di voi._"

"_Grazie._" She had always been taught to be polite.

The couple held her close to them. The woman's name was Silvia and she was kindly towards Laura, hugging her close until she fell into an uneasy sleep.

* * *

"Lady of the Skye!" Loki bellowed, his shout ringing through the hall. Skye flinched back, and it did not escape past Fandral unnoticed. He glanced at her curiously. "You have one day to give yourself up to me or this woman dies!"

Skye craned her neck, trying to see what was happening. She pushed a little to get further forwards, and her heart skipped a beat. There was Loki, with a knife to Simmons' throat. She looked terrified.

And then a familiar voice echoed around her. Sif. "Forgive me, my Lord, but what has the Lady done wrong?"

"She has brought an army of her people into my kingdom, and then tried to kill me where I stand," he snarled back, glaring daggers at her.

Skye reeled. She had not done either of those things.

"My Lord, where is her army now?" someone called from the back of the room.

"In the dungeons," Loki said. "If she stays hidden, they will be executed, but if she comes forward we will imprison her and assume that her army is a small group of rebels to be dealt with in their homeland, to which we shall return them."

Blood pounded in her ears. She felt lightheaded, and sick.

The ground started to shift slightly. Was she going to faint? But everyone else was feeling it too - alarmed murmurs were coming from the crowd. There was a definite tremor beneath their feet.

"In fact," Loki hissed angrily, "I believe she's here now. Step forward, Lady of the Sky." He made a slicing motion across Jemma's neck with his dagger, not actually drawing blood, but enough to make her flinch back. She bumped into him and he wrapped a green-clad arm around her middle. "Step forward, or the girl dies!"

Shakily, Skye drew in a breath. Would he really kill Simmons? Was he that cruel? _He stabbed Coulson,_ she reminded herself. He was that cruel.

Loki dragged her along with him to scan the faces of the noblemen and women. She bowed her head again, and angled her hair in front of her face so that she could just see in front of her. There was silence. She shut her eyes.

When she opened them again, the people in front of her had parted and she was exposed. "Hello again," Loki smiled, and the illusion of her friend faded away to nothing.

**A lovely long chapter there for y'all!**

** Reviews!**

** EmmaJMcGhee- Ha! I'm sorry that didn't really answer many of your questions, but we will see some more of Mancini in the next chapter (and Coulson and Ward can beat him up if you like :D). Thanks for reviewing!**

** HunterChic- (x4) Yay! I like them too, though I have gone off Ward a bit, recently. I'm glad you're enjoying this. Yes, things are heating up a bit now, I'm still not entirely sure how long I should make this story but it's a work in progress! And yes, hahaha, I am horrible, because I leave stories on terrible cliffhangers and then forget to update them ;). Thanks for reviewing!**

** Bit disappointed that the number of reviewers per chapter has gone down fairly drastically... Please do leave a review, it totally makes my day and encourages me to update!**


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